Dimitrios' World: The launch of the Space Shuttle and a nation's des...

Dimitrios' World: The launch of the Space Shuttle and a nation's des...: "As I watched Space Shuttle Atlantis take off yesterday and remembered watching, as a teenager in California, Space Shuttle Columbia in Apr..."

The launch of the Space Shuttle and a nation's destiny

As I watched Space Shuttle Atlantis take off yesterday and remembered watching, as a teenager in California, Space Shuttle Columbia in April 1981 take the shuttle program into space and recall all its ups and downs (with the disasters in 1986 and 2003), I also understand the sense of destiny that makes a nation proud (in this case the US and its space quest).... The emotions are always the same - goose bumps, tears that cannot be held back, and a sense of pride of having had the privilege to live and study in the US for a significant part of my life. .... And then I always reflect on my country...What about my country, what is its sense of destiny?...It seems to have none, perpetually lost is its pettiness, unable to overcome the burden of its glorious past and the gifts its peoples gave to the world starting with the greatest of all - democracy.

The shuttle program is coming to an end with the Atlantis mission but I do not have any doubts that the United States will be leading the way for future travel in space... What about beautiful, tormented Greece? I have my idea of what it should forward to...I only wish all of us look ahead individually and collectively and dare to dream...

I remember being enthralled in 1986 by reading the Pulitzer Prize-winning book The Heavens and the Earth: A Political History of the Space Age by Walter McDougall, my professor at UC Berkeley at the time (I still have an autographed copy somewhere). I remember watching Philip Kaufman's 1986 epic film The Right Stuff , later Ron Howard's captivating Apollo 13 in 1995, as well as numerous documentaries on the first moon landing on 20 July 1969....Truly great, emotional, thought provoking and inspiring feats linked to a nation's assumption that it can conquer space and proudly show the world that it can be done and that there is more to it than Yuri Gagarin's earth-shattering feat as the first man in space on 12April 1961. Despite the setbacks, the mission must go on...

Again my thoughts return to my country and hope that amidst its current travails, it possesses the wherewithal, the backbone and the chutzpah to rise proudly and dare project its destiny for generations to come....one that contributes to the moral, intellectual, and ideological well being of the world. Let the dream and the reality of the conquest of space act as a guide and inspiration...

The Audacity to Hope and the Audacity to Dare

Much is being written these days about the nature of the "Indignants’' that are out en masse in the main squares of Greek cities. How can such a heterogeneous movement full of contradictory demands and aspirations really be an expression of the fundamental need for political, social, and economic change? How can such a movement contribute to lifting society and the country out of its morass? One well know journalist who has been ahead of the curve by repeatedly daring to make Greek taboos known to the rest of the world, Takis Michas, wrote an interesting piece in protagon.gr titled "Where were you Indignant?". He presents an endless list of figures that show the slow decay of the country such as the fact that the consumer index was 12% than the average in the EU while the average income in Greece was 5% below the EU average and productivity was 20% below the EU average, etc.. Others question the demand and feasibility of "direct democracy" that seems to be a growing demand by the "Indignants". Yet others such as Paschos Mandravelis, a respected liberal columnist, correctly in my view, deride the methods of some of the “Indignants” including the blocking of Parliament, the throwing of stones, eggs, etc. at Ministers and any political figure that happens to be recognized…comparing these to fascism.

Like many others, I fear that the indignation and the outrage if not channeled properly and if there is no systematic attempt by the government and Parliament to clearly demonstrate the necessity and fairness of the harsh economic measures (such as the reduction of salaries and pensions as well as the fundamental restructuring of the public sector and an effective tax collection mechanisms that makes offenders pay for being free riders), the soup will hit the fan, to put it mildly.

Yet, we should all not lose sight of what the movement has done. It has undoubtedly brought about hope (at least an itsy bitsy expression of it) that the silent majority that has benefited from the system in place for some 30 years (and its siblings that cannot be accommodated by it anymore) is aware for the need for change. In part the citizens accept their mea culpa for their input in the current mess; they fundamentally understand that rebuilding means that the rights and privileges that are currently being scaled back cannot be justified under current conditions any more – I dare hope.

Apart from hope, the “Indignants” movement has allowed for a more lively exchange of views as to what needs to be done for the country to be reborn. One of the many placards held up by the outraged in Constitution writes “You have stolen our smiles”. The challenge is how to regain these on a much sounder basis.

One tract that is making inroads in the press and the internet by a group of intellectuals is titled “Dare”. It basically is a call against populist and irresponsible public rhetoric that remind us all that societies, especially healthy ones, can only be built with toil and sacrifices across generations. Negating all means negating the benefits of accession to the European Union and the adherence to western norms and values; negating all implies believing that we are a nation without brethren and deluding ourselves that we can stand alone. The system is broken; it therefore needs repair both in terms of its institutions and the human resources that comprise it and lead it. This call for change and its magnitude is not new; it has become more vocal and public over the last few years while acquiring more vociferous opposition by the systemic vested interests and many on the streets today that had been co-opted by it.

The recipes are many but they are all tough as they all necessitate a primordial rewiring of how a vibrant democratic, economically prosperous, socially inclusive society that is an EU member states operates. These include measures such as the ones Panagiotis Ioakimides, a perennial insider, presents in a recent article – separation of government and state institutions; separation between Church and State; lifting of the asylum law for universities; etc… The road ahead is difficult and painful but it risks becoming tortuous and without seeing the light at the end of the tunnel if the outrage and indignation falls victim to populism and destruction.

A few days ago, the BBC had a very interesting story about how Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, was not among the lucky ones in getting tickets for his family for the 2012 London Olympics as his on-line application was rejected. His response was that this made him “proud to be British”, and that no other country in the world would reject the mayor of the host city's application for tickets. I can only hope this would be the case in my country as well on day. One of the rallying cries of the “Indignants” is a Mahatma Gandhi quote that “poverty is the worst form of violence”; though equating Gandhi’s struggle and his world to today’s Greece is undeniably far-fetched, poverty is and can be a rallying call to build a more egalitarian and accountable society.

The audacity to dare and hope is within our grasp…if only we can all direct all our energy there, albeit the outrage and indignation.

Keeping the Outrage in Perspective

The street protests in Greece are raising a big debate about their purpose, their cohesion and their effectiveness. After the initial feeling of elation that comes with a spontaneous expression of discontent with the state of the country and the ineffectiveness of the political system much ado is being made as to whether this largely heterogeneous mass of citizens with very disparate perspectives can actually express a cohesive platform of positions and possibly even evolve into some sort of political movement.

Herein the danger. The street protests are meant to mobilise the political elite into taking action but as long as the governing and the main opposition parties are ineffective (or perceived to be ineffective) in leading, the street protests will quickly disintegrate into an unruly mob with an anti West, anti EU, anti IMF, anti anything that is not Greek populist movement. The presence of many Greek flags (a sign that the lines between patriotism and nationalism are becoming blurred) and the ease with which many protesters heap insults on who they deem responsible for their condition is a volatile mix. The populist rallying cry by Mikis Theodorakis on 31 May among others against the sell out of the country against a background of anti creditor and anti Semitic chants is a case in point. Another example of a worsening danger was the blocking of all exits from Parliament thereby trapping MPs and staff inside.

Indignation and outrage is slowly turning into restlessness, hate, and populist rhetoric and this does not augur well for what is to come. Where I in Greece I would probably still be in the main square of Athens in indignation of where my country is heading but I would also be increasingly worried about how this outrage is channelled.

Outrage! The Greek Political Class Finally Revolts

The feeling of outrage is growing among the professional political elite in Greece. It can be easily understood -- they have been running this country for over 35 years (and some for much more) and now the people they represent or at least a part of them have been taking to the streets to protest! What ires the despondent and indignant politicians is that the people in the squares and streets are not protesting within the organised confines of the unions and political parties that have been formed to allow citizens to vent their anger and to to be co-opted but, how dare they, these new protests have been taking place without the approval of the party machines! Even worse, whenever anyone shows up waiving the symbols of any of our benevolent political formations, they are derided and threatened.

As a result of this growing phenomenon, the politicians feel the very core of their existence under threat. If they cannot govern as they have to date with their vested interests, the widespread use of clientelism, the passing of the baton to their siblings, the bloating of the public sector, etc... what will become of them? Their indignation has led to their revolt.

The political class has finally woken up and is trying to regain the upper hand. They have decided to show the citizens that have repeatedly voted for them all these years who is in charge! They have decided to change the rules of the game. Friday, 27 May was a good example... Meeting with great fanfare under the watchful eye of the President of the Republic (another wise and exemplary representative of post-1974 democratic political elite with close ties both to Milosevic and Qaddafi), the enlightened leaders of the five parties represented in that well-oiled chamber called Parliament decided that they will not consent to consensus, that they will not agree on a plan to saving the country from further political, social and economic degradation, that all that counts is showing who's the boss. Let the facebook revolutionaries filling the country's main city squares over the last few days take heed, our benevolent leaders have reacted with courage, chuzpah, audacity and vision!

I am so proud of my leaders. I can't wait for the next elections to vote for them again and perpetuate their stay in office. If only the electoral system would allow me to vote for all of them (now, that is an interesting proposal for electoral reform)! Surely those pseudo-indignants in the squares of Greece will see the error of their ways and go home and let the brave professionals rule!

God bless the Greek Political Class! May they eternally continue to bless the country with their brave forward looking leadership (or lack thereof, for avoiding to take tough decisions can only be an act of political courage -- who are we the mere laymen to doubt them?)!

The politicians are finally outraged! The country is about to be saved. Amen...

(I better stop here and run to the bathroom before I make a mess of things... the urge to vomit cannot be held back ...)

The Malaise of being a Greek Today

It wasn’t that difficult to decide, in my current state of mind, that my present and future do not lie in today’s Greece. I thus took the decision to emigrate and move to another city, another country, another university, another work environment where my talents, ideas, and work experience, whatever these might be or are perceived to be, were sought after and appreciated. In the short while that I have left Athens (not even a full month), I feel energized and creative again, full of aspirations, and more committed and hopeful in not only fulfilling my duties and obligations but helping, with the means at my disposal, my country stand on its feet and prosper far more than I have been able since I lived and worked in Greece.

The malaise of being a Greek today is overburdening. It possesses you as a fundamental human necessity – hope – seems to have lost its presence. I hope it is hidden behind a passing cloud or trying to unlock itself from the closet it finds itself imprisoned. If ‘hope is a waking dream’, as Aristotle was reputed to have said; in present day Greece, it is not nowhere near to being awakened.

‘Stay and fight for change like we are doing,’ I heard from many friends, colleagues and students, yet it my beleaguered state of being, the decision to leave was a no-brainer. It allows me to breathe without feeling the uneasiness of putting on a brave face for months to my colleagues at the think tank I used to run as I fought to ensure that their jobs were not at risk. More importantly, I felt I could not face my students at the university for another term with bravado full of empty optimism which I did not believe in. If ‘a leader is a dealer in hope’, I for one as an educator refuse to deal in false hope any longer. A telling example of where we have come in terms of our moral bankruptcy as a society is an incident which I was involved in a few months ago. In one of my weekly flights back and forth to Rhodes in order to teach at my university department, a young stewardess approached me and asked me if I remembered her in an emotional voice barely holding back her tears. She did look very familiar and I could only think that she was former student of mine. She was. She reminded me that I had written her a letter of recommendation to do an MA in International Relations at a UK university a couple of years ago. She was accepted in the programme and received her degree only to return to Greece to find the job market limited that she managed to take the job with the airline because of her foreign language skills. Her pent up emotions upon seeing me, her teacher, personified her crushed aspirations of pursuing a career in a domain she had the intellectual wherewithal to do well and the sad reality of being lucky enough to find a job in order to avoid joining the ranks of the growing unemployed, in particular among her generation. Her parting words were the most crushing – ‘Professor Triantaphyllou, I would have preferred not to have run into you today.’

This meeting has stigmatised me. It also helped me reaffirm my belief that my life belonged elsewhere, to paraphrase Milan Kundera. If I had stayed and accepted the norms, rules, and restraints of making ends meet in today’s Greece, I would have found myself increasingly marginalised, despondent, and impotent especially as I continued to exercise my responsibilities as a university professor considered a part of the social elite that have much to be blamed together with their political counterparts for the decadence of post-1974 democratic Greece. In order to survive I would have had to make a break, resign from the university and restart my life anew as an honest man making an honest living as a dishwasher, a painter, a farmer, a bus driver, etc. with the hope that with hard work life can only but get better. I chose to leave in order to salvage what I could of who I am intellectually, spiritually, and professionally. Some might consider this running away, I think it is more about finding hope again, about believing that hope is real, tangible, and omnipresent and transmitting it through my teaching, my writings, my conversations in whatever amount is allocated to my fellow Greeks because I believe in it. The malaise in being a Greek today is to have stopped believing. I can only hope that by moving abroad, I will.